A medical thorascopy, or pleuroscopy, is a medical procedure used by a clinician to examine the pleural cavity and thoracic cavity. During the procedure, a visualization device, such as an endoscope, is inserted into the patient through a relatively small percutaneous puncture site. Such a procedure may be performed in a number of settings, including an operating room and an endoscopy suite, and may be performed under general anesthesia or sedation with local anesthesia. Depending on what is shown during the thorascopy, one or more associated pleural space procedures, such as biopsy, drainage, and chemical pleurodesis, may be required. The associated procedure may require an additional percutaneous puncture site, independent from the puncture site used for the thorascopy, and may require the insertion of a chest tube, or pleural port, to facilitate the procedure. One of the major risks associated with these procedures, particularly where multiple insertion sites are needed, is infection, which can occur if bacteria are present on any of the tubes or devices inserted into the patient.
The present disclosure is directed toward one or more of the problems set forth above.